


Only Michael Remained

by EvertheOptimistWaywardAF



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Archangel Gabriel (Supernatural), Archangels, Bittersweet Ending, Canonical Character Death, Child Abuse, Emotional Manipulation, Gen, Implied/Referenced Torture, POV Michael (Supernatural)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:41:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24582499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EvertheOptimistWaywardAF/pseuds/EvertheOptimistWaywardAF
Summary: When Michael reunites with his Aunt, Amara, he remembers his traumatic past. Michael struggles with what really happened and what he believed to be the truth as he comes to terms with the abuse he witnessed in his family.Set in Supernatural season 15, in the canon timeline.
Kudos: 15





	Only Michael Remained

Michael stared. He could hardly believe what he saw, right there, in front of him. She hadn’t changed at all in the billions of years that had passed. Her hair was still curled carefully, her eyes dark. She seemed to radiate sadness. It passed through Michael like a knife, cold and painful, as he looked her in her eyes. Amara hadn’t changed. 

It was long before humanity even was a whisper of a dream. It was a time when there was little to the universe but space and emptiness. A few things existed back then. Death, the first incarnation, who was still very young. The Empty, sleeping. And the four archangels. Michael was the oldest, about sixteen in human years. Lucifer was two years younger, then Raphael was two years younger than that, her curly brown hair uncontrollable, refusing to be pulled back. And Gabriel was just four. He had come into being much later than the rest of them and mostly due to Lucifer complaining that he wanted another sibling.   
Amara was a familiar face around them at the time. She wasn’t very nurturing or kind, but she loved them for who they were and treated them like any other being in the world. She liked Lucifer the most, and had a soft spot for Gabriel and Raphael. Michael and Amara got along just fine, but they weren’t as close. Michael had always been more devoted to dad.   
“Teach me a new trick!” Lucifer laughed, chasing after Amara, his soft pink wings propelling him through the air. Amara turned around, materializing back into her smaller self. She was usually a gigantic mass of black smoke, but she would turn into a smaller shape, much more like them. Lucifer flew around, laughing, and collided with the ground. He slid across the clouds until he ran into Michael’s feet.   
“Really, Luci?” Michael said. “You’re setting a bad example for Raphael and Gabriel.”  
“You don’t know how to laugh,” Lucifer said, standing up. He pushed his long dark hair away from his eyes, but it fell back into his face. Michael smiled.   
“I don’t know how to laugh?!” Michael said. “I taught you everything you know!”   
“You wanna bet?” Lucifer tackled Michael. The two of them rolled around, laughing.   
“Stop it! Dad’s gonna see!” Raphael said. She stomped forward, looking down at them. Gabriel was close behind, his short hair curled up like wings. His honey green eyes seemed to give away his mischievous intention a second before he tackled Raphael. “GABE!”   
“I told you!” Michael said, pushing Lucifer off. “Gabriel, cut it out!”   
Amara picked Gabe up, laughing. She set him back down, a few inches away, and grabbed his hand. “The three of you need to stop it! Your father is in a bad mood today.”  
“Auntie Amara, dad’s always in a bad mood,” Lucifer whined, dusting off his tunic.   
“His experiment failed,” Amara said, rolling her eyes. “Apparently something went wrong and it imploded.”   
“Why?”  
“Can you keep a secret?” Amara asked softly, kneeling down. The four gathered around her, intrigued, nodding. “I’m the reason why his experiment failed. He was… he was acting in a way that scared me so I shut it down. He doesn’t know yet.”   
“What?!” Michael cried. Amara pressed her finger to her lips.   
“You can’t tell him. I can’t believe I told you. He… my brother can be intense. He’s a puppet master… I’m not sure what that means, I think I just invented that word… but he likes the control and I thought it was wrong to… to let him do that anymore. I should have talked to him but… I didn’t want to. Don’t tell him.”  
“I promise,” Lucifer said.   
“I love you,” Amara smiled, ruffling his hair. Michael watched her, wide eyed, as she walked away. He looked at Lucifer.   
“We have to tell dad…” Michael said.   
“No! No way. We keep this secret.” 

Michael listened to his brother. He didn’t tell Chuck. As the leader of the group, he had to be the reliable one and he had promised to be good. When Lucifer came to him, accusing him of telling, Michael was shocked.   
“I DIDN’T DO IT!” Michael cried. His little brother had a cold look in his eyes.   
“THEN WHY DID DAD TELL AUNTIE AMARA TO LEAVE?!”   
“I PROMISE, I DIDN’T TELL!” Michael pleaded. “Lucifer, you have to understand-”  
“Michael… you betrayed her trust! You betrayed our trust!”  
“I didn’t. I promise,” Michael felt tears burning. He felt as if the clouds had vanished from under him, as if he had suddenly lost his wings and was spiraling into space.   
“You promise?” Lucifer asked, wiping tears off his face.   
“I promise.” 

Amara hadn’t been around for some time before Chuck declared war. It came as a shock to all four of them, who had still been growing up. It had only been about four years since Amara left and they hadn’t seen her in that entire span of time. Almost immediately, Lucifer called a meeting. Chuck didn’t show up.   
“You should go. I don’t want you to be in trouble,” Amara said, looking around nervously.  
“We want to be here!” Gabriel said, reaching out. She took his hand gently, smiling.   
“I’m sorry, Gabriel. You can’t risk this,” She said, letting go. “I tried to play Chuck’s game but he’s pushed me too far. I asked for space, but now he’s using what little space in the universe I have left. I’ve got to-”  
“What’re you doing here?” Chuck’s voice rang out. Michael winced, clenching his wrists. Amara stood up, backing away from the archangels. Raphael ran to her side. “Why are you talking to her?!”   
“I asked them here, brother-”  
“RAPHAEL!” Chuck bellowed. Michael lunged forward and reached for Raphael, but she hid behind Amara, grabbing her skirt.   
“Raphael, move!” Lucifer hissed. Chuck stalked forward, looking at all of them.   
“Michael, you were supposed to look after them,” Chuck said coldly, grabbing Michael’s arm. Amara backed away further, Raphael still grasping her skirt. “You could have gotten your siblings killed! You could have gotten Lucifer killed!”   
“It was my idea!” Lucifer cried. Chuck glared at him. “I thought that if the two of you saw each other, everything would be fine! Dad-”  
“Michael, why did you let him go through with this harebrained excuse of a plan?”  
“It wasn’t a plan! It wasn’t anything! We asked you to be here!”   
“It doesn’t matter!” Chuck yelled, pushing Michael to the ground. “You disobeyed me!”   
“Come with me!” Amara said. Chuck turned his glare on her. “Michael, Lucifer… Gabriel, get over here.”  
“What are you doing?”  
“We’re at war and I think it’s clear who’s side they’re on,” Amara said. Chuck reached down and picked up Gabe, holding him in his arms. “Brother… no…”  
“Well, are you three going with her or with me?” Chuck demanded. Raphael looked out nervously, still clinging to Amara’s skirt. Lucifer looked to Michael, his month slightly open. Michael looked to Amara, wishing that he could turn this around. He wished none of this had ever happened, that they were still happy. He wished that nobody had ever told on her.  
Then Michael looked at Chuck. Chuck gave him a slight nod, a look that was almost threatening, his light blue eyes like ice. Gabriel was still in his arms, helpless.  
“I’m going with dad,” Michael said. Lucifer looked at Amara, then slowly looked away. They walked to Chuck, not wanting to look back. Chuck patted Michael on the back.   
“Raphael?” Chuck asked. Amara stared at Chuck, Raphael’s small hand in her own. She was unsure of how to react. Raphael hadn’t gone with the rest of them.   
“Raphael, come here,” Michael said softly, turning around. He didn’t want to look at Amara’s face, focusing on Raphael’s hand in Amara’s, and the bit of her arm that he could see. She looked around Amara’s skirt, her wide brown eyes filled with a look of sorrow.   
“Come on!” Lucifer said. He was trying to cover it up, but his voice was getting higher. “Raphael, get over here.”  
“Auntie Amara is family!” Raphael cried. Amara looked down at her sadly.   
“Time’s up,” Chuck said coldly. He began to walk toward Amara. Amara’s eyes widened and she threw Raphael down, vanishing into a cloud of smoke. Michael remembered running forward, getting Raphael in his arms. She was just fine when he found her. She had been fine. Upset, but perfectly healthy and alive. They had gone home silently. Chuck finally handed Gabriel to Lucifer, and had told Michael to wait, taking Raphael on a trip. Michael would never know what happened to Raphael, but she didn’t come back the same.  
The next couple of days were just the three of them. Michael thought back on the time he had spent with his father and decided on one thing: That he had to be devoted, until the very end. Not because he was afraid of his father- of course he was, but that wasn’t why Michael had to do this. He had to be loyal because there had to be a reason for his fathers’ actions. There had to be more to Amara’s betrayal. There had to be something else that Michael didn’t know, that Dad did. Michael just had to trust him. Until the bitter end.   
Chuck walked back with Raphael in his arms. She was curled up and looked tinier than usual. He had cut her hair in that time, and she looked different. She had lost weight, if that was even possible. Chuck set her down and none of the archangels made a move to help her. Lucifer had a cold, gazed look in his eyes as he stared at Raphael’s fragile frame. He didn’t look the way he used to. He had changed.  
“Amara hurt her,” Chuck said to Michael. “This is what happens when you disobey. You should have listened to me. I told you that were are at war. Amara isn’t our family anymore.”   
“Are you going to kill her?” Michael asked. Chuck laughed bitterly, shaking his head.   
“I wish I could. If Amara dies, I die too,” He said. He looked over at Lucifer, who was playing with Gabriel. “Don’t tell your brother I said that.”   
“Father, I… I understand. We adore you, and we serve you,” Michael said. “We will fight for you. I can lead them for you.”  
“Good,” Chuck said, looking away. Michael could see a fraction of the smirk on his face. Chuck stood up. “You know… Lucifer is my favorite son. If you pull this off, maybe I can reconsider that.”   
“I love you, father,” Michael said. He wished that Chuck would turn around and hug him, or even look at him. Instead, Chuck stood up and walked over to Lucifer and Gabriel. He smiled, gently touching Lucifer’s shoulder and talking to him, saying things that Michael didn’t want to hear. Lucifer smiled back. It was the beginning of the end. 

“You’ve been gone a long time,” Gabriel said snarkily. Raphael aggressively shushed him. Michael felt chills go down his back. Chuck sighed, dropping a paper down in front of them.   
“I made this nice little spell,” Chuck said. “We don’t have to kill… or even hurt… my sister. What we can do is put her in a cage, so we can keep expanding.”   
“Gabe’s right. You’ve been gone too long,” Lucifer said. Michael resisted the urge to strangle his brother. “We’ve been worried. We were all alone out here.”   
“Lucifer-” Michael hissed.   
“Michael, don’t talk out of turn,” Chuck said. “Gabriel, you shouldn’t speak unless I give you my permission. You know that.”   
“Dad, we love you,” Lucifer said. “We missed you.”   
“Like I said, I created this spell that will trap Amara forever,” Chuck said. “I need someone I can trust. Someone reliable.”   
“I’ll do it,” Michael said. Chuck glared at him.   
“The day I trust you is the day that… Hell freezes over.”  
“What is Hell? If it’s not a word yet, I call it,” Lucifer said.   
“You are unreliable and ungrateful, Michael. I asked you to do one job- take care of your little siblings. You constantly fail. They don’t respect you as a leader. You need to try harder.”   
“Then give me this chance, father!” Michael cried. Chuck shot him a look.   
“Lucifer, would you hold the key to Amara’s cage?” Chuck asked. Lucifer looked up, smiling. “Oh, you’re excited. I forgot how clingy you are.”   
“I would do anything to get back at the monster who hurt Raphael!” Lucifer said. Michael felt a sadness take over him. Nobody but him seemed to remember what happened back then. Everyone acted like he had organized it, that it was his fault that Raphael got hurt. Michael still remembered seeing Raphael right after Amara shoved her. She had been fine. Whatever Michael was thinking, it didn’t matter. No matter what he thought he saw in Chuck’s eyes- a look of emptiness as he showered Lucifer in praise- no matter what, Chuck was right, and therefore it was right to follow him, even if the plan wasn’t clear yet.   
It was strange how the final battle went. It was there, then it was gone. Amara was gone. They promised to tell no one about Amara, ever. Michael still wondered who told on Amara. He still wondered why Raphael never looked him in his eyes ever since that day, why she used to embrace him and now she was withdrawn and empty, quiet, as if she were trying to fade away. He still wondered if Lucifer’s mysterious illness had been predicted, if the hours he spent trying to help his little brother recover would have ever meant anything in the long run. Maybe he just extended the amount of time Lucifer had left. Maybe he didn’t make a difference at all. He wondered, when Lucifer rebelled, why he even fought him, why he even cared. He thought that at the end of the plan, Chuck would return and they would all be a family again. He wondered if he truly thought that, or if it was an excuse to not implode after everything that had happened. He wondered if he really was terrible, it was all his fault, if he could have saved Amara, or Raphael, or his little brothers, but it was too late. Everything was over.   
And only Michael remained. 

“Who did it? Who told Chuck that you ruined his experiment?” Michael asked. Amara smiled, tears welling in her eyes.   
“It was me. I told Chuck that I ruined his experiment. I thought that if I told him the truth, about what I did and how I felt, that he might listen. He didn’t.”   
“It was… you?” Michael felt so many emotions at once. The lies… they had been building up for so many years. He had built his existence on lies.   
“Yes. I realized that it was better if he heard it from me rather than you,” Amara said. “I’m sorry. I should have said goodbye.”   
“You didn’t hurt Raphael.”  
“Someone hurt Raphael?” Amara asked. Her lower lip trembled. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t… I didn’t know I hurt her. Is she around?”  
“No. She’s dead. I felt it.”  
“I’m so sorry, nephew.”  
“She died alone,” Michael said. He felt tears, real tears, flowing down his face. “We weren’t there for her. They all died alone.”  
“So Lucifer, Gabriel…” Amara’s voice faded away.   
“It’s just me,” Michael’s chest burned. “I’m the only one who survived. And… and Lucifer had a son. He’s young. He looks like him, a little. I’ve heard he looks more like his mom, but… I see Lucifer there too… Lucifer before all of this.”   
“A son…” Amara smiled, wiping her tears. “I didn’t expect that.”   
“I heard you and Lucifer fought.”  
“I wanted to get back at him for the billions of years…” Amara looked down at her hands. “Although… I know it’s not him, now. He was a pawn in someone else’s game. I was still angry… I still am angry. I’m not sure I’m ready to forgive you. I was so angry at this entire world, everything that Chuck created, and now I’m just… okay, with it.”   
“I should have taken your side.”  
“I can’t be angry at you for making that decision. Chuck is your father,” Amara said. “I saw the way he looked at you. You loved him, and he was manipulating you. He manipulated all of us. I don’t mean to make myself out as good by any means. I’m the Goddess of chaos and destruction. I’ve hurt so many people. I just… I’m trying to get better. I’m doing yoga now. I hope you’re doing better.”   
“I… I am. I found somebody who loves me for who I am,” Michael said, rubbing his arm. He smiled. He felt warm inside.   
“I’ve heard the Winchesters’ pitch,” Amara said. She breathed out slowly, wiping away the last tears. “I’m still neutral. Are you siding with them?”  
“We haven’t decided yet. We’ll do what’s right, when we get there,” Michael said. “Until then, we’re going to deal with the hits as they come.”   
“That’s a good way to live life,” Amara said. “You were always such a planner. It’s interesting to see the new you.”   
“This version of me isn’t new. I just know what I’m fighting for now,” Michael said. Amara nodded.   
“I like any universe where I get to do yoga,” Amara said. Michael smiled. “I’m glad you found your calling. I hope… when it’s time, I hope I know what I’m fighting for.”  
“You will,” Michael said. “And I’ll respect you, on either side of the battlefield, or even if you decide to not go on it at all.”   
“Thank you, nephew,” Amara said. She looked out the window. “I’d like to see Lucifer’s son. Is he…?”  
“Winchesters’ side,” Michael nodded. “I’ve only seen pictures.”   
“I hope he is the way you say he is… like Lucifer before all of this…” Amara said. “I miss the old days so much. I miss my family.”   
“Hey, I’m here,” Michael said. Amara smiled. “If you ever want to talk, I’m here.”  
“I’ll find you,” Amara said. She vanished. 

Michael looked at the picture of Jack that he had saved in his phone. It was slightly blurry, Jack hugging Sam Winchester, his bright blue eyes shining. He looked a lot like the younger Lucifer… the awkward half smile, the mop of hair- although Jack’s was lighter and shorter- and the way they squinted their eyes. Michael knew that Lucifer was gone. He had been gone for a long time, long before he was even dead. Michael hadn’t seen Lucifer in years… maybe four or so… but he hadn’t known Lucifer in 5 billion. The last time he saw Lucifer’s smile… his real one… had been before they fought Amara. At a certain point, Lucifer had become empty. Soon after that, he had gone insane.   
Michael set his phone down, and for the first time, he mourned. He mourned for Raphael, who had been with him during all of this pain… who had lost the ability to feel emotions, had lost her love and her happiness… and was probably equally as sane as Lucifer by the time she died. He mourned for Gabriel, who had vanished… Michael had never looked for him because he had always known that Gabriel didn’t want to be found. He didn’t even feel Gabriel’s death, in the end. It had been years of terror and pain for Gabriel, until he finally died. Michael hadn’t seen him in over 5 billion years. He never got to say goodbye.   
And Lucifer… what an idiot. Lucifer had always been the reckless one. The one who thought that everything would work out, but also was the most cynical. Lucifer wanted to get everything over with. He had been cruel and insane toward the end. Michael remembered feeling his joy at discovering he had a son… and also his pain at his death. And then he was gone. And Michael was the only one left.   
“It gets better,” Adam said. “My mom was killed when I was a teenager. I miss her a whole lot. But she’s with me, always.”  
“Her name was Kate,” Michael said. Adam smiled sadly.   
“Yeah. I get to carry her memory, because it’s all I can do now. I get to remember her, and when I do things, I do them for her.”   
“I like the way you think.”  
“And about forgiveness… we had a bad time too, remember? We were terrible. But when the worst got worser, we were there for each other. You were there for your brother. You tried your hardest, but he had to make his own choices. He chose his path. You chose yours. There’s no doing back. There are no redos. You can still be mad at him for his bad choices but you can feel sorry for him at the same time. There’s no shame in that.”  
“Do you think I can forgive my father?” Michael asked.   
“I don’t know,” Adam said.   
“No words of wisdom?”  
“I just don’t know, Michael,” Adam said. “That’s up to you.”   
“I wish everything was easy.”  
“Me too,” Adam said. “But it’s not. So we can move forward, or we can dwell on the past forever. I like to move forward. And if we get called to battle, we decide, then, what we’re going to do. For now, we just try to be happy.”   
“You’re admirable,” Michael said. “I feel like punching a wall.”   
“Good. It means you can show your emotions. Please don’t break my hand, though.”  
“I promise I won’t,” Michael said. Adam smiled.  
“Good.”  
“Good.”


End file.
